You Might Be a Christian Feminist

Do you consider yourself a feminist?” A seminary professor once asked my class.

“No. Not me. No feminist here.” The words floated through my brain with a tangle of messages I had received growing up. I couldn’t pinpoint one event or message that had determined my early understanding of feminism. No doubt an amalgam of media, entertainment and messages in church had conveyed feminists as angry, bra burning fanatics who despised men, worshipped women, and opposed families. It honestly never occurred to me that an evangelical could be feminist.

“Raise your hand if you believe women and men deserve equal pay for equal work,” the professor continued.

I raised my hand.

“Nod yes if you believe women and men should have equal rights socially and politically.”

I nodded yes.

A PowerPoint slide flashed onto a screen. “According to the Oxford English Dictionary,” the professor went on, “you are a feminist.

Well. The writers of the Oxford Dictionary are not necessarily known for being experts when it comes to gender studies. While I believed the Bible opposes inequitable pay (a form of stealing) and social and political injustice, I tended to associate feminism with irreverent, unkind pursuit of its objectives. I couldn’t square that with Christian faith that incites loving one’s neighbor as much as oneself.

Then again, in a world brimming with very real and ugly injustices against women and girls, I wondered if writing off feminism was Christ-like either. The dilemma spurred me to study the history of feminism in light of Scripture.